Surprise! Natalie fooled by chair prank

After demonstrating how he set up a prank to scare Natalie Morales this morning, magician Rich Ferguson explains what makes a good April Fools’ joke fun for everyone and shows off three creative tricks for you to try on friends and family.

See amazingly awkward family holiday photos

St. Jude’s patient, 9, gives back to the hospital

St. Jude celebrates 10 years of saving lives

Girl survives rare cancer after mom defies doctors

TODAY
November 22, 2013

Bill Cosby helps Al Roker 'Make 'Em Laugh'

TODAY
November 22, 2013

This content comes from Closed Captioning that was broadcast along with this program.

>>>it's
april fool
's day when people like to bring out their inner jokester. we've been
having fun
with people around here this morning.
rich ferguson
disguised himself as a chair in our
green room
and caught people by surprised. good morning, nice to see you. pranks are fun. pranks can also cross a line. what is the definition of a good prank?

>>something creative, leaves people wanting to do it to somebody else.

>>shouldn't embarrass someone to the point where they're angry afterward.

>>but maybe got to get back at someone, maybe.

>>i got a little angry at you rich, sorry.

>>you want to do it to your friends, you want to see it be done.

>>there was a whole mastery going on how they duped me into sitting on the chair. i do what i'm told.

>>he welcomed her back from vacation and that was matt in the cushion there.

>>no. thanks for your help, savannah. let's move on to some other pranks people do that are harmless.

>>this is harmless. basically
toilet paper
roll, and they pull and a spider comes running and the thing that's cool it's not just a spider stuck, the illusion it's in motion because you're pulling the
toilet paper
roll. it adds to your brain a lot.

>>the image of someone running with their pants down around their ankles out of the bathroom is something you have to get hold of.

>>this gets someone in a vulnerable position which you want to do in a prank.

>>true.

>>we like the way you think. okay, what's with the water?

>>this is a great one at bars and parties. we have a straw in a cup. you take another straw, you tie it in a knot and when your friend looks away, you swap out the straw and then you have fun the next five minutes watching them how to suck.

>>helps if it's not a clear liquid.

>>you wouldn't notice that in a million years, definitely not.

>>okay and finally?

>>this someone fun because today is monday and it's an office day, so a lot of people thought we'd throw in a prank. you take a
paper clip
, put it on the
copy machine
, leave it on the machine and take the paper you used, put it in the machine, orientate it, they assume they made a copy with the
paper clip
, they remove it and do it again and again and frustrated for ten years and you're sitting over there laughing your butt off.

>>make them insane.

>>you just wasted a lot of paper at the office.

>>did you have any friends as a kid?

>>come on!

>>no, these are cute, harmless and innocent. rich, thank you very much.